Secrets
by iPodInsanity
Summary: A new gardener casts an unknown curse on Sofia, then disguises herself to look and sound like Sofia. Read to find out how problems arise and dissipate! (Established, older Cedfia. This summary is really bad. Sorry!)
1. Chapter 1

Cedric sat at his in his workshop, looking out the window. Normally, he'd be working on a new potion or spending secret time with his lovely princess, but he was currently riding a train of thought that seemed too possible for comfort. Despite Sofia's constant reassurances since the beginning of their relationship that she had loved him for nearly two years, she could leave him any second. Not because he didn't believe or want the princess, because _God_, did he. But because he really wasn't enough. He felt old, he felt ugly, he felt like Sofia deserved someone young and handsome and _royalty_, something he could never be.

Amidst his thoughts, Cedric didn't notice a certain princess slip into his workshop until a small pair of arms lovingly wrapped themselves around his chest from behind. "Oh, hello,"

"Hello to you too," Sofia giggled. Her voice might as well be sunshine, for Cedric couldn't help but close his eyes and enjoy it washing over him. "What are you thinking about?" She asked, pulling away to hop up on the desk in front of him.

"Nothing important," He said offhandedly.

"You've always been a terrible liar, dear,"

The sorcerer sighed. "Its just that.. I.. you.. I don't deserve this," He stood up so they would be eye level.

"What don't you think you deserve?" Sofia felt like she knew, but didn't want to bring it up without being sure.

"You. This. You're so.. beautiful and kind and.. and you're a _princess_," The word seemed to shimmer from his mouth. "But I'm just an ugly, old sorcerer who has nothing going for him," His princess gently used a hand to guide Cedric's gaze to her, though he still couldn't bring himself to look at her.

"Oh, Cedric," He closed his eyes at the way she said his name. "I love you. I don't think you're old, and I certainly don't think you're ugly. You're _quite_ handsome and you care about me, and that's all I need," She kissed him softly, briefly, before he finally opened his eyes.

"You certainly have a way with words," He smiled sadly. "But I heard news of a prince coming to ask for your hand. You can't deny that I'm not a prince,"

"I'll refuse him. Don't compare yourself to a prince; you're too busy to think about such trivial matters,"

"Oh, too busy, hmm? And what am I too busy doing?" He smiled finally, not being able to not feel elated at Sofia's words.

"Why, kissing me, of course." Just as their lips almost met, Baileywick cleared his throat from the door. He already knew of their relationship after seeing them kiss one night out in the garden, but the princess begged him to swear to secrecy so he never spoke a word about it, unless to make sure with Sofia that everything was going alright.

"There is a guest here to greet the royal family, Princess Sofia. You are being requested."

"Of course I am," She sighed. She still kissed Cedric quickly, and could feel his lips trying to chase after hers as she hopped off the desk. "I'll come back as soon as I can."

"Take your time, love."

Baileywick escorted Sofia to the throne room where she took her seat before a pretty girl who looked barely older than Amber came through the doors and bowed.

"I'm Eleanor, and I'm the replacement gardener." The young girl smiled.

"Welcome to the palace, Eleanor." King Roland said. "I do believe Baileywick can tell you where your supplies and gardens are?" Baileywick nodded and lead Eleanor out of the throne room.

"She seems nice, don't you think, Sofia?" Miranda asked her daughter.

"I have a bad feeling about her," Sofia's forehead creased in thought.

"I'm sure it's nothing. Maybe lunch didn't settle well with you?" Roland suggested.

"You're probably right, father. May I be excused?" Sofia stood, smoothing her skirts out. She was permitted to leave and immediately set out for the path that lead to Cedric's tower but past her bedroom, so she could quickly change into a more comfortable dress before spending all her time leading up to dinner with Cedric. Unfortunately, her plan was never put into effect for just as she was about to leave her closet, a pair of hands grabbed her waist and covered her mouth.

Sofia struggled by trying to kick the door, but no one would notice since her closet was in the back of her room. She soon felt very tired, and felt herself being laid down on a plush sofa.

Clover, who was sleeping on the princess's bed, heard the banging and quietly snuck to a place behind the closet door. He saw Sofia leave and ignore him, but took the opportunity to enter the closet while Sofia left the room.

Once inside the closet, Clover saw Sofia laying on the sofa. But how was that possible? Sofia just walked past him.. unless.. oh no. Someone is impersonating Sofia and left the real Sofia out cold on this couch! Thankfully, the rise and fall of her chest was still obvious. Still, he needed to tell someone, and fast, before things got worse.

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><p>I wrote this because I had a really intense writer's block, so this is not going to be the best you've ever read. Still, I figured somebody somewhere would want to read it, so here it is. :)<p> 


	2. Chapter 2

Cedric was called to the King's throne to be requested as entertainment for Sofia's date with Prince Desmond. With no other choice, the sorcerer accepted and retreated back to his workshop to write a schedule for his impromptu show. He had told Sofia to take her time, but was now hoping she would return quickly so he could inform her of his job. The princess ended up not appearing before the date began, though Cedric supposed she would have been busy with getting ready to please her father by going on the date.

Still, it didn't make it any better when he walked in the room and Sofia appeared to be in a flirty conversation with the prince. He announced he would be giving a short magic show, and his small audience applauded. He performed a few party tricks, all having to do with pink hearts or red roses or the idea of love.

"Would you like me to perform any more tricks, your highness?" Cedric was obliged to ask the guests.

"No, thank you, Cedric," Cedric silently thanked Sofia for sensing he was uncomfortable. "Your magic is truly wonderful, but I'd like to be alone with Prince Desmond for awhile," She smiled at the prince.

"Y-yes, your highness. Good day." He hurried to pocket his wand and bow before leaving the room. He tried to ignore the vile thoughts of Sofia alone with a handsome prince the whole journey back to his tower.

Not two hours later, Cedric's stomach was rumbling and he remembered he had not eaten all day. He set out for the kitchen, pausing to hide around a corner when he saw Prince Desmond walking with Sofia. It almost physically pained him to see her clutch onto his arm while she laughed.

However, nothing could have prepared Cedric for the heartbreaking event that occurred next. Cedric's heart could be heard shattering as he saw Sofia reach up and share a kiss with the prince. They turned down a hallway toward the kitchen and all of the sorcerer's hunger left with the pair. Feeling like a teenage boy when it was revealed the girls had only been dared by other boys to date him, he returned to his tower once more; this time with a boiling rage building up inside of him.

Just as he was about to slam the door to his workshop, Clover came hopping up to talk to Cedric. Not wanting a reminder of Sofia at the moment, he tried to close the door anyway. Years of keeping up with Sofia made Clover a very quick rabbit, and he still managed to dart inside.

"What do you want? Is Sofia ignoring you, too?" The man asked, hands on his hips.

'So he's seen the imposter, then.' Clover tried to motion for Cedric to follow him, but he wasn't quite getting the memo.

"I don't speak to animals and I can't understand you," He said rudely. Finally, Clover was able to lead him to the front door and encourage him to follow him all the way to Sofia's door.

"Oh, no. No way. I'm not entering the princess's bed chambers!" He was about to walk back to his castle when 'Sofia' opened the door.

"Mr. Cedric! What a lovely surprise," She smiled.

"Yes, of course," He coughed awkwardly, also trying to understand Clover's motions. For whatever reason, he _really_ wanted Cedric in that bedroom.

"Your magic show was lovely. And my date went great! Dad thinks I might start courting him soon," Whoever this 'Sofia' imposter was, obviously had no idea about Cedric and Sofia's relationship.

"Courting? But I thought I.. we.." The sorcerer's eyebrows knitted together once again, his arms reaching for her hips.

"That is highly inappropriate," 'Sofia' shoved his hands away and quickly hurried down the hall.

While Clover felt for Cedric, and he really did, he needed him to know Sofia was under some sort of spell and that wasn't the real her.

"I cannot go in. I have a feeling it would be considered.. highly inappropriate." And with that Cedric began to stomp away, only to physically run into the new gardener.

"I'm so sorry, Mr. Cedric!" Eleanor's eyes were wide.

"Yes, yes, whatever." He continued to his tower, heartbroken for the second time that night.


	3. Chapter 3

The next day, Clover felt lost. He noticed the imposter had a fake, not working amulet, but couldn't understand when he tried to talk to her. Whoever the imposter was didn't want the amulet. He had no idea what else to do, but thought maybe spending a day with the Sofia imposter would reveal who it was. Or he could cause them to slip up.

"Sofia!" The imposter turned around to see Baileywick approaching with Clover in his arms.

"What is it, Baileywick?" Her annoyed tone threw him off guard for a moment.

"I-um, Clover was found in the kitchen. I think he's hungry, maybe you would want to feed him?" He held the rabbit out to the girl.

"Of course, thank you," She took the animal and continued on her way, rolling her eyes but enjoying the softness of his coat. "Hungry, hm? I can find some things in my garden, I bet,"

_'_My garden?_Wait, wait, wait. Was this the new gardener? What kind of magic was she using to look and sound like Sofia?' _Clover thought.

Once in the garden and feeding on carrots, 'Sofia' ducked into the nearby garden shed and exited a few seconds later looking like Eleanor.

After his meal, Clover had to call in the reinforcement of Wormwood to make a plan to reveal Eleanor's dark secret to Cedric.

"What do you want?" Wormwood yawned.

"Listen, I have a solution to something I know you'll care about. There's another person in this castle using magic. And I'm sure you've noticed how upset Cedric is," Wormwood began to tie the loose ends together, but Clover continued anyway. "Well, that's because the new gardener has knocked Sofia unconscious in her closet and is disguising herself as the princess. She obviously has no idea of Cedric and Sofia's relationship, and if you want Cedric to ever smile again, you need to help me get Cedric to find out about Eleanor,"

The unlikely pair devised a plan for Wormwood to 'accidentally' get out, causing Cedric to witness Eleanor enter the garden shed as Sofia and leave as herself. They believed Cedric's curiosity(and a small amount of hope) would get him to snoop in Sofia's room and find the princess.

* * *

><p>"Ugh! Where are you going?" The sorcerer chased after his bird, pausing when the avian swooped into the royal garden, where 'Sofia' could be seen holding Clover.<p>

"Because you hate me," Cedric directed at Wormwood under his breath. He spied from behind a tree and saw the princess put her friend down and glance around to see if anyone was watching. Cedric hid his face behind the tree and when he emerged a few seconds moments later, Eleanor was in the spot Sofia used to be. But how was that possible? Unless.. Eleanor has disguised herself as the youngest princess? But _why?_

Eleanor left the rabbit in the garden to go inside the palace. When Cedric went to retrieve Wormwood, he noticed the two animals seemed to be conversing, and Clover headed into the castle with Wormwood right behind him.

Obviously intrigued, Cedric followed the pair at no secret. They lead him through the halls and right to Sofia's door, where they looked expectantly at him.

"This again? Are you kidding? It's late and I'm only a Royal Sorcerer. Maids will talk if I go in her room right now," He felt ridiculous talking to the two animals. Beside, what was Sofia really doing if she had the gardener running around for her? She probably didn't want to be disturbed.

Clover began to paw at the door, gradually getting louder. "Stop! Someone's going to hear you- oh, of course. Fine, I'll enter! Just stop making that horrid noise." He knocked lightly and entered after the animals, making sure nobody saw them, and then closed the door.

They lead him to her closet and he opened it without thought, beginning to understand their code. Snapping, the room illuminated with candles in lanterns and a figure could be seen laying on a couch. "Hello?" Nearing the figure, the sorcerer dropped to his knees right next to the furniture. "Who's - _Sofia!_"

Clover shared a knowing look with Wormwood.

"Are you okay? Wake up, love, come on," He gently shook the princess. He finally understood why the animals were so insistent. "Wormy, go get a wand from my workshop and come find me. I need to notify the King and Queen."

The bird cawed, and Cedric gently picked up the unconscious girl. Clover closed doors behind him as he quickly but carefully began the path to the throne room. He thanked whatever gods were listening when he saw Baileywick in the corridor.

"Cedric? What's happened, is everything alright?" He quickly approached the pair.

"Not at all. Someone's placed a spell on the princess and has been running around disguised as her," Cedric's arms began to grow tired, so he gently laid the girl down on a bench in the hallway.

"Guards! Carry the princess and come with me. Cedric, you come too. We need to inform the King and Queen right away," At that time, Wormwood flew to Cedric's shoulder and dropped the wand in his hand. His mind racked for awakening spells as he filled Baileywick in on all he knew.


	4. Chapter 4

Baileywick in turn filled the King and Queen in on everything they knew while Cedric leaned over the bed Sofia was laying on. Their relationship may have been a secret but their friendship wasn't, and nothing seemed out of the ordinary. King Roland sent word to capture and detain Eleanor before she could do any more damage.

"Can you do anything, Cedric?" Queen Miranda asked.

"I can certainly try, but the problem is I don't know what Eleanor's done to her," He sat on the edge of the bed.

"Sofia even told us she had a bad feeling about Eleanor, and we didn't listen," Roland groaned.

"Honey, that's not-"

"Eleanor's nowhere to be found, your highness," The guards burst into the Royal chambers.

"What? Where could she have gone?" Roland asked.

"We have no idea, sir. She's left a note that says, 'Took you long enough.' What should we do?" The lead guard said.

"Baileywick, go with some guards and bring James and Amber here right away, then continue looking. The land isn't safe until she's found," The king said.

The guards nodded and left.

"Excuse me, your highness, but she can obviously shapeshift; finding her will be no easy task." Cedric absentmindedly played with the ends of Sofia's hair.

"Someone has to try," Roland replied sternly. "Now, if you're not going to be of any help, go back to your tower."

"Roland! Don't be so harsh. Maybe go get some spell books, and then bring them back here? We have at least a dozen guards keeping this room safe," Miranda suggested. Just then, the groggy children came into their parents' room. Cedric nodded and stood up.

"Yes, your highness," Miranda could see the plain worry on his face for her daughter, and had noticed how he touched her in this short amount of time. She believed he would do all he could to save her.


	5. Chapter 5

Cedric had been looking through books for hours and had finally compiled a list of harmless techniques to try to wake Sofia up. When Miranda asked for the list, he handed it over without thinking. He had forgotten he had written 'true love's kiss' at the bottom and underlined it.

"Why is true love's kiss underlined?" Miranda tried not to let it known that she knew why.

"Oh, well, I- uh, if nothing else works we can always try that. It has a very high success rate," He mumbled.

"Oh, how romantic!" Amber clasped her hands together. James had fallen asleep in a chair long ago. "And she's just started courting Prince Desmond. How perfect,"

Cedric cleared his throat. "Yes, of course,"

"Actually, I think we need to send word that Sofia was not in her right mind when she agreed to court Prince Desmond." Roland told Baileywick to send word as soon as Sofia was well again.

Fourteen spells later, Sofia was still unconscious on her parents bed. Cedric's hair had been messed up from him pushing it out of his face so often, and he was starting to seriously worry the only person to undo the spell could be Eleanor. In addition to that, the sun was going to rise in a little less than an hour and he hadn't slept a wink.

Sofia's family was also exhausted, though they showed it in their own way. James was snoring in a chair, Amber kept dozing off only to snap awake and try to focus on staying awake for Sofia. Miranda sat on the side of the bed Sofia wasn't laying on, holding her daughter's hand while Roland paced the room. The Queen noticed the only thing left on the list was True Love's Kiss, and if she truly knew her daughter, the best thing for Cedric right now was privacy.

"I think we should leave Cedric to try the last few spells in privacy," She announced, kissing Sofia's forehead before standing.

"What do you mean? What if she wakes up while we're gone?" Roland stopped pacing to stare curiously at his wife.

"I believe Cedric would inform us," A quick glance at Cedric revealed he was trying to hide his fear at being found out.

"But she's-"

"_Listen_, Rolly," She sighed, making her way to the King. "We're exhausted. No additional harm is coming to Sofia and I'm sure Cedric doesn't love us breathing down his neck."

"-Fine. But you are to come get us if she wake up, understood?" The King made his way to wake up James.

"Yes, your highness," Cedric turned to the Queen. "Thank you, your highness." He said earnestly.

She smiled knowingly and followed her family into a private lounge nearby. "I do believe you have our daughter's best interest." She nodded, and Cedric couldn't help but feel like she was talking about much more than his spells.

Finally alone, he stared at the list in his hands. The quickly scrawled words had a question mark next to them. If this didn't work, he would be heartbroken not only because he was not Sofia's true love, but also all out of ideas.

Gently pushing her hair away from her face, he placed one hand on her cheek. After placing his other hand on the bed to steady him, he kissed her. They had kissed plenty of times before but never had he felt the need to convey just how much he was in love. His brows were furrowed and he only stayed there for a few seconds before pulling back.

Cedric's focus turned to blinking back tears when nothing changed. But soon, the princess's eyes opened, only to squint at whoever was next to her.

"Cedric?" Her voice was raspy from being unused. "What's wrong, you look like your crying," And he was. Because the second her eyes blinked open, he realized not only were they meant to be, but she was _okay._

"Sofia," He grinned, and tackled her on the bed hugging her. He rolled them over and kissed her again, this time with Sofia being able to feel his grin.

"You know I love you, and I don't mind this at all," Sofia sat up on the bed, Cedric following suit. "But you're acting like I almost died. What happened?"

Cedric let out a laugh; he had forgotten she would not know! "In a way, you almost did. The new Royal gardener must be some witch because she used an unknown spell to knock you out and left you in a closet,"

"_What?_"

"Yeah. She went around with a spell that made her sound and act like you, except you were a little more rude, and had you start a courtship with the prince you went on a date with," His voice strained.

"Oh no, I'm so sorry," Sofia snuggled next to him, wrapping her arms around him. She could only imagine how he felt, especially with their prior conversation about his view on the matter. He kissed the top of her head, one hand going around her back.

"That was not your fault, you don't need to apologize. Anyway, Clover and Wormwood lead me to your real body, I alerted the rest of the royal family - who are in that room, I actually need to alert them since you woke up," Cedric pointed to a door, and began to try to stand up, only for Sofia to tighten her grip on him.

"Wait, Cedric," Oh, how he missed her saying his name like that. "How did I wake up? You said you didn't know what spell she used. How did you counter it?"

He felt embarrassed about how he now had to explain this. "Well I - I mean, that is - It was true love's kiss," He sighed.

"_**What**_? True love's kiss? Honey, that's wonderful!" She jumped out of their position to be on her knees next to him. She was so elated, she grabbed his face and began kissing him again. They were so engulfed in each other, they did not notice the door to the royal lounge open.

"We heard yelling. What - Cedric! Unhand my daughter,_ now!_" Roland stomped into the room as Cedric scrambled to get off the bed. "I'll deal with you in a minute."

"Sofia, you're okay," Miranda hurried to hug her daughter. The rest of the royal family rushed to Sofia's side.

"Dad, don't do anything drastic. Cedric saved my life and we-"

"That doesn't matter! He doesn't deserve a prize, let alone _you_," The King spat.

"I was the one kissing him! Because we-"

"Baileywick, get the guards," Roland growled.

"Baileywick, please," Sofia pleaded, hurrying to stand in front of Cedric, who could feel his whole world crashing down.

"Wait, how was the curse lifted?" Amber was beginning to catch on.

"That's what I've been trying to tell you!" Sofia yelled, causing everyone to fall silent. Taking a deep breath, she moved back to take Cedric's hand in hers. "After trying literally everything else imaginable, Cedric brought me back with true love's kiss."

"What?" Roland and James gasped. Miranda smiled knowingly, and Amber was just trying to feel happy for her sister. Sofia felt Cedric grip her hand tighter under the intense gaze of the king.

"Yes, so please don't call the guards on him. Cedric and I have actually been in a relationship for a few months, so it really isn't a surprise to us. I would have rather we had a more elegant way of telling you, but I suppose I've never done anything the way others do," Her smile at him caused Cedric to break into a small smile, the love visible in his eyes.

"Sofia, he's-" Roland was cut off by his Queen.

"That's wonderful, dear. I'm just glad you're back, let alone in a steady courtship with someone who very clearly loves you," Miranda stepped forward to hug her daughter.

"Miranda, he's a palace worker! She has a line of handsome princes who would kill to have her hand," Roland's anger began to dissipate at his wife's stern gaze, but only slightly.

"I haven't always been royalty," Was all she needed to say for him to relax his shoulders in defeat. "I suppose it will just take a little time for me to get used to your relationship, Sofia. However, if he is your true love, I will learn to get over it."

"Thank you, Father!" Sofia ran to crush him in a tight hug. "You won't regret it. Cedric is nothing but caring and he will never hurt me."

"I suppose we should give you some privacy." The king started to walk toward the large Royal chamber doors only to have them burst open, guards running through.

"We have caught her, your highness. Many guards are down with her in the prison."

"Thank you. Lead us there," Roland linked arms with his wife. "Amber, James, you should really get some rest."

After everyone had gone, Sofia fell onto the bed again. "That was a little rocky,"

"It went way better than I expected," Cedric laid down next to her.

"Really?" She smiled, pulling him closer to her. "How did you picture it going?"

"I thought your father would surely have me killed. I could not be more thankful for your mother. I know where you get all your good traits from," He smiled down at her.

"You're so dramatic!" The princess laughed. "Father will get used to it. Mother is perfect for him; she keeps him from making irrational decisions. Just like me for you,"

"Very funny," He replied dryly, only to crack a smile at her giggling.

"I love you." She said when she had stopped.

He kissed her, slower than he had before. "I love you, too." He whispered against her lips.

She smiled, only to have the gesture be swallowed in yet another kiss from her sorcerer.


End file.
